The Garden is central to the UK jewellery industry and is based in London, a multicultural city that boasts millions of talented individuals from a multitude of backgrounds. Unfortunately the jewellery industry doesn’t seem to have much room for those of us with darker skin.
Upon realising this, I decided to find and reach out to as many black jewellery professionals as I could, which proved to be surprisingly difficult from the get go. In trying to find my fellow black jewellery enthusiasts, I quickly realised that if consumers wanted to support black owned jewellers or brands, they would face the same difficulties I encountered and may opt for a more visible, thus, more convenient competitor.
To my knowledge there isn’t a black jewellers association or advocacy group in the UK. There isn’t a place for black jewellers, designers, retailers or gemmologists to come together to discuss our position within the industry. There isn’t an organisation championing the youngers to explore careers within our industry. Yet, black people are responsible for a large percentage of the gemstones and metals used within the global supply chain.